Storm blasts Hawaii with 70-mph winds, 30 inches of rain and a foot of mountain snow
Snow on the summit of Mauna Kea
A storm moved over Hawaii this past weekend, causing flooding, knocking down trees and power poles and dumping a foot of snow on the island's mountaintops.
On Monday morning, every spot in the state was under a flood watch, with widespread wind advisories and winter storm warnings on the mountains of Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa.
AccuWeather Meteorologist Alex DaSilva said that a stalled front draped across the Hawaiian Islands, combined with a slow-moving area of low pressure, led to major flooding and near-hurricane-force wind gusts.
Hawaiian Electric warned customers to prepare for extended power outages Sunday night, after power was restored to 45,000 customers lost power earlier in the day. As of Sunday night, 19,000 customers were still in the dark.
Winds gusted over 70 mph on the islands of Maui and Moloka'i, with gusts over 60 mph on Oahu, Lanai and the Big Island. Rainfall amounts exceeded 30 inches at Laupahoehoe on the Big Island, with 23.22 inches at Waikamoi on Maui.
All public schools, and the University of Hawaii, were closed on Monday, Hawaii News Now reported.
Flooding was reported on several roads.
"The road to the summit [of Mauna Kea] is closed," the Center for Maunakea Stewardship posted on Facebook Sunday night. Webcams on the summits continued to show snow early Monday morning. The winter storm warning issued by the National Weather Service called for up to a foot of snow.
"Although the storm will move out after Monday," DaSilva added, "Western portions of the island chain will have to be on alert for the possibility of heavy rain this weekend as an area of low pressure moves to the west."
It snows in Hawaii?
Snow in Hawaii is not as unusual as many might think. The Big Island summits of Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa, home to research facilities, both rise above 13,000 feet, higher than the tallest points in 44 U.S. states.
Because of their high elevations, the mountains in Hawaii routinely get snow during the fall, winter and spring. Snow isn't officially measured in the state, but on average for the last 20 years, 25 to 30 winter weather advisories are issued for the peaks each year.
The earliest winter weather advisory in the fall during the last 20 years was on Oct. 13, 2014; the latest was in spring on June 8, 2018.
AccuWeather
Storm blasts Hawaii with 70-mph winds, 30 inches of rain and a foot of mountain snow
A storm moved over Hawaii this past weekend, causing flooding, knocking down trees and power poles and dumping a foot of snow on the island's mountaintops. On Monday morning, every spot in the state was under a flood watch, with widespread wind...
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